Breech loading gun.



NO. 794,770. PATBNTEDJULY 1a, 1905.

H, P. EARNING. BREBOH LOADING GUN.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 21, 1904. l

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

7 f/ i ,f

Aunnaw a. can-mu cu. umucmpuens WAABHW GGGGG o.

No. 794,770. PATENTED JULY 10, 1905. 7 H. F. EARNING.

BREECH LOADING GUN. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 21, 1004.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

. 2 Z Q2... I OZ 1 7297 Z4 I "329 0 6 I 3 94 T Z4 Z2 9 ee f8 WITNESSES 22622701? 8227 arzzzlgq 4 TTORNEYS Patented July 18, 1905.

i ATENT Fries.

HENRY F. EARNING, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY.

BREECH-LOADING GUN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 794,770, dated July 18, 1905.

Application filed November 21,1904. Serial No. 238,593.

To all whom, it may concern.- a

Be it known that I, HENRY F. EARNING, a citizen of the United States, residing at J ersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Breech-Loading Guns, of which the following is a specification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to guns of the breechloading class, and particularly to rifles of this class; and the object thereof is to provide such a gun in which the usual finger-lever is employed and by the operation of which a breech-block is operated vertically into or out of operative position with reference to the barrel of said gun, a further object being to provide a gun of this class which is automatically set at full-cock in the operation of removing said breech-block from operative position and which is cockedbefore said breechblock is moved, thereby preventing injury to the firing-pin or other portions connected with said breech-block, a still further object being to provide a gun of this kind or class which dispenses with the hammer usually employed,

said hammer being replaced by a longitudinally movable firing pin, the operation of which when the gun is discharged does not in any Way affect the users aim through vibration imparted in a direction different than the aim of said gun.

The invention is fully disclosed in the following specification, of which the accompanying drawings form a part, in which the separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views, and in which- Figure l is a longitudinally vertical section of a rifle constructed according to my invention and showing the operative parts in positions which they occupy after the discharge of said rifle; Fig. 2, a view similar to Fig. 1, but showing the parts in their extreme lower positions, which they occupy during the loading of said rifle or the insertion of a cartridge in the barrel thereof; Fig. 3, a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4, an enlarged section on the line 4 L of Fig. 1; Fig. 5, an enlarged face view of the forward end of a breech-block which I employ; and Fig. 6, an enlarged View of the firing-pin similar to that shown in Fig. 1, but showing a slight modification thereof, said modification being the adaptation thereof to rim-lire cartridges, whereas Fig. 1 is adapted for center-fire cartridges.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification I have shown at a a portion of the barrel of a rifle, which is screwed into a receiver 7), which forms the body portion of the rifle and which contains the operative parts thereof, and also mounted in said receiver is a fore-arm tip 0, which bears against the under side of the barrel (0 in the usual manner, and inserted in the receiver 6 and at the rearward end thereof is a butt-stock 0 only a portion of which is shown, and the fore-arm tip 0 and butt-stock c are composed of wood or other suitable material in the usual manner and are secured to said receiver in the usual or any desired manner.

The barrel (4 is provided with a circular recess a in the rearward end thereof, said recess being adapted to receive the flanged end of a cartridge, and in the normal position of the parts of my improved rifle, as shown in Fig. 1, a firing-pin d is mounted directly at the rear and centrally thereof of the barrel a, and the firing-pin (Z consists of an annular w ing 0Z mounted in a breech-block e and movable therein longitudinally of said barrel, and the casing (Z is provided with a pointed end (Z which is screwed into the forward end of said casing, and a strong coil-spring cl (hereinafter referred to as the mainspring) is placed within the casing 622 and is held therein by means of a pin d passing through slots (Z on the sides of said casing and into the breech-block on either side of said casing, and, as will be seen, when the casing 03 is forced backwardly against the spring cl said spring is compressed because of the pin J, said pin being independent of the casing d and when the casing d is released in its backward position the mainspring d forces said casing forwardly, and the pointed end 6Z3 passes through a plate 6 secured in the forward end of the breech-block e by means of screws 6 as clearly shown in Fig. 5, and the plate 0 may be removed whenever desired and replaced by an other permitting greater or less movement of the casing (Z, or the plate 0 by the turning of the screws 6 maybe adjusted to permit the pointed end (Z to project farther into the barrel a, if desired, or said plate 6 may be replaced by one similar to that shown at e in Fig. 6, in which the opening a therethrough is placed nearer the periphery thereof, this last-named plate a to be used with rim-fire cartridges, and when so used the pointed end (Z employed in Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, is replaced .by one similar to that shown at (Z in Fig. 6. this substitution of the plate 6 or the end (Z being readily accomplished and without taking the gun apart, for, as will be seen in Fig. 2, if the fore-arm tipc be removed, a screw-driver or other tool may be inserted in the receiver 6 and the screws 0 be taken out if the breech-block e be lowered to its extreme position, as shown in Fig. 2.

The breech-block 6 consists of two side members e, which operate in substantially vertical grooves in the inner sides of the recciver Z2 and as clearly shown in Fig. 3, and the side members a of the breech-block are preferably united or integral at their upper ends, thereby forming a bridge or cover over the casing (Z as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 4c. The casing 61 is provided on its under side with a downwardly-projecting finger (Z rearwardly of which and at some distance therefrom is a shoulder d, and when the easing CV is forced backwardl y a lock-bolt f, provided with a shouldered end f and normally forced upwardly by a coil-spring f, is adapted to engage the shoulder (Z and hold the casing d2 in its backward position. The lockbolt f is slidably mounted in a casingf, secured between the depending side members a of the breech-block, and said bolt is provided adjacent to its lower end with a vertically-arranged recess f, in which is mounted a lever f, pivoted at f, and if pressure he bi hght to bear on the end f of the lever f the lock-bolt f is drawn downwardly, thereby releasing the shoulder f from the shoulder cl, and the casing (Z is forced forwardly by means of the mainspring cl.

Pivotally mounted at g on the receiver Z) and within the same is a finger-lever g provided with a recess y in which the triggers 7L and z' are adapted to operate, and the fingerlever g is provided adjacent to its pivotal point g with two upwardly-directed members g between which is pivotally held a togglelever g" by means of a bolt 9 passing therethrough and through said members g and the toggle-lever g is pivotally connected with the depending members (2 of the breech-block c by means of a bolt g, and when the fingerlever is operated downwardly and forwardly in the position shown in Fig. 2 the toggle-lever g is first carried into the position shown in dotted lines at Fig. 2, at which time the upper inclined surface of a nose g of said toggle-lever bears against the finger d of the casing (Z and the toggle-lever g being firmly connected with the breech-block e the casing (Z is forced backwardly by the said movement of the toggle-lever g and the finger-lever g until the shoulder (Z is engaged by the shoulder f of the lock-bolt f, at which time the casing (Z which constitutes the firing-pin of the rifle, is cooked, and a continued movement downwardly and forwardly of the finger-lever 6Z2 until the position shown in Fig. 2 is reached carries the breech-block e and its connected parts downwardly into the position shown in Fig. 2, at which time said breech-block is completely below the recess a of the barrel (0, and a shell or cartridge may at this time be inserted in the barrel (0, and when the finger-lever g is brought to the position shown in Fig. 1, the breech-block e is forced upwardly to the position shown in Fig. 1, and if the firing-pin had not previously been engaged by the lockbolt f the said firing-pin is forced backwardly in the upward movement of the finger-lever g, as will be seen, and the rifle will at this time be cocked; but cocking thereof is usually accomplished in the first stage of the movement of the toggle-lever and the finger-lever g previous to the downward movement of the breech-block e.

The plain trigger it, as shown in the drawings, is pivotally mounted in vertical side members If within the receiver Z) and is provided with an operating-spring 7L3 and with a backwardly directed pointed block 71 by which a forwardly-directed pointed end of the set-trigger a; is adapted to be engaged, said set-trigger i being provided with a trigger-spring i and mounted pivotally between the vertical members If in the receiver 6, as shown at 70, is a striker the rearward end 70 of which is adapted to be struck by the outer end 71" of the set-trigger 2', and the forward end k of said striker projects over the end f of the lever f, as plainly shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and when the set-trigger 71 is operated the parts assume the positions shown in Fig. 2, and when slight pressure is brought to bear on the. plain trigger it the set-trigger 71 is released therefrom and, springing upwardly, comes in contact with the striker 1 14 which in turn striking the end f of the lever f withdraws the lock-bolt ffrom its engage ment with the tiring-pin or casing d thereof, and the rifle is thereby'discharged, and upon another downward movement of the fingerlever g the rifle is again cooked and the breech-block carried to a position permitting the insertion of a fresh shell or cartridge.

In Figs. 1, 2, and 4 I have shown a safety device to be used in connection with my firing-pin and which consists of an eccentricallypivoted disk on, mounted in the breech-block directly above the casing (Z of the firing- 

